It is “very likely” the coronavirus lockdown will be extended when it is reviewed on Thursday, Nicola Sturgeon has said.

The UK-wide lockdown will be reviewed by the government on Thursday, six weeks after it came into force. Boris Johnson is then expected to outline to the public the road map out of lockdown this Sunday.

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Sturgeon’s warning came on the same day Johnson warned that lifting lockdown restrictions too soon would be “the worst thing we could do”.

In a video message on Twitter, the Prime Minister said: “We will only be able to move onto the second phase of this conflict if our five tests have been met. The worst thing we could do now is ease up too soon and allow a second peak of coronavirus.”

Nicola Sturgeon has said the coronavirus lockdown is likely to be extended when it is reviewed this week. (PA Images)

The Scottish first minister told a press conference the virus infection rate is still too high to safely ease restrictions. She said: “Let me stress, decisions are yet to formally be taken, it is very likely that on Thursday I will asking you to stick with lockdown for a bit longer.”

She added that “real and significant progress” has been made, and that some work on a potential transition from lockdown will be published in the coming days.

Sturgeon said work would be done to ensure there was alignment with the rest of the UK, but divergence in measures could still be possible.